Frustrated Britney Spears says fans took things 'too far' after calling for police welfare check

Britney Spears is "annoyed" with her fans for calling the police on her.

The 41-year-old pop star caused concern when she changed her name to River Red on Instagram earlier this week before deleting the social media app, and a source has claimed to TMZ that she wasn't too happy when her online conduct prompted some followers to contact police and ask for a welfare check, resulting in officials from the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office paying a visit to her California mansion.

The outlet went on to claim that while the ...Baby One More Time hitmaker "understands how deeply her fans care about her and her wellbeing"  and "wasn't totally surprised things escalated to law enforcement’s involvement", the whole episode was still an "inconvenience"  for her and an insider pointed out that she has deleted her Instagram "several times" in recent years.

According to reports, officers decided "there was no reason to believe she was in danger”, but it is unclear if they spoke to the singer directly.

Later in a statement posted to Twitter, Britney wrote that she feels her fans "went a little too far" by requesting the welfare check.

"As everyone knows the police were called to my home based on some prank phone calls," Britney wrote.

"I love and adore my fans but this time things went a little too far and my privacy was invaded. The police never entered my home and when they came to my gate they quickly realised there was no issue and left immediately.

"This felt like I was being gaslit and bullied once the incident made it to the news and being portrayed once again in a poor and unfair light by the media," Britney continued. "During this time in my life, I truly hope the public and my fans who I care so much about can respect my privacy moving forward."

Britney has claimed one of her previous removals of the account was an accident, and she also deleted it in June 2022 a week after she married actor Sam Asghari, 28, as well as in March last year.

The Toxic singer - who regained control of her multi-million dollar fortune and various aspects of her life when a conservatorship governed by her family was terminated in 2021 after 13 years -  had already prompted concern among fans with a rambling post talking about changing her name and an apparent “meltdown” at a restaurant.

She said: "The news of me being tipsy in the news, then exploiting my past is a clever way to make me look like a pardoned woman that we can look at and say AWWW !!!”

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- Bang! Showbiz, additional reporting by The Hits